Golden Knights forward excels at drawing up faceoff plays

Reilly Smith was not credited with an assist on the tying goal in the third period Jan. 20 against Montreal. But the Golden Knights winger probably deserved one.

After all, it was his play design from an offensive-zone faceoff that helped lead to Jonathan Marchessault’s power-play goal.

“He kind of drew that up and said Marchy was going to be open on that side,” center William Karlsson said after the Knights went on to win in overtime. “You have to give Smitty credit.”

That’s far from the only time he has called a play on a faceoff. Take a look before each key draw in the offensive zone, and the Knights typically huddle before lining up.

When Smith is on the ice, he is the one directing traffic most of the time.

“I think faceoff plays and some special-unit things that you can jump on, it’s just watching video and seeing different tendencies that teams have and then seeing where you can exploit it,” Smith said. “There’s not too many opportunities you get each game, so if you can create an extra one or two it goes a long way.”

Smith has played 11 seasons in the NHL and seen dozens of different faceoff plays in his career that he’s cataloged in his memory bank.

Coach Pete DeBoer said Smith has earned the right to orchestrate faceoff plays as an alternate captain and respected leader. It’s similar to a quarterback calling an audible and then meeting with his offensive coordinator on the sideline to explain why.

“He’s comfortable in his skin in a leadership situation and is comfortable with our group that he can put in some of those things that he sees if he sees something that we don’t,” DeBoer said. “Let’s be honest. As coaches, we don’t see every tendency that the players do. They’re smarter than we are a lot of nights. Especially a smart guy like that. He has that freedom.

“He’s usually right when he calls it.”

Smith has skated with Karlsson and Marchessault for five seasons on the Misfit Line, and knowing their strengths helps when drawing up a play. For instance, Marchessault’s preference for shooting the puck came in handy against the Canadiens last month.

Smith had recognized that the Canadiens would leave the weakside free after the faceoff and allow Marchessault room to walk into the slot and pick out a corner seven seconds into the power play.

“I like having a plan off every draw, especially in the O-zone obviously,” Karlsson said. “That’s where he actually draws the plays up. He doesn’t care about the D-zone. But I like having a plan. He’s got some good ideas.”

Of course, Smith’s faceoff plays are only as good as his teammates’ execution. It starts with possession of the puck, and Karlsson’s winning percentage on offensive-zone draws (55.5 percent) is tops on the team among players with more than 100 faceoffs taken.

“It’s nice when they work. I’d say they don’t work 95 percent of the time,” Smith said. “They’re always open for ideas and willing to do different things to try to manipulate the other team’s defense. Obviously, fresh eyes is always good, and whoever speaks up, it’s always worth trying a new play or something.”

Contact David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ on Twitter.